Invictus Memorium
by Alyssa James
Summary: Kagome Higurashi's entire life was changed that fateful day when she fell through the Bone Eater's Well and met Inuyasha. While continuing her fight with Naraku and searching for the sacred jewel shards, her cousin Anri decides to pay a visit. She tries to hide her secret life from her cousin, but to no avail. But it seems Anri has a few secrets of her own... INUYASHA X KAGOME
1. Chapter 1

**Updates every Monday! Yay for schedules! **

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN INUYASHA, DURARARA, OR ANY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE CHARACTERS! I ONLY OWN THIS STORY!**

XXX

**Chapter 1**

_There once was a girl._

_She was not memorable, nor strong; not smart, nor good-looking. She was simply nobody, a stranger to this world._

_And her world as well._

_The past was not concrete, but it was not abstract. It was simply there, forever buried in her consciousness. _

_It was impossible to forget, impossible to remember. _

_No._

_That wasn't quite right._

_She would not forget. Her past…_

_It was the truth. It was a lie._

_It was reality._

_It was **her** reality._

XXX

Izaya was bored.

No, it wasn't like he didn't have anything to do. He could, he supposed, make more people's lives miserable, whether it was by gathering new information or selling his records and watching his beloved humans from there—but lately, this type of day had become rather… mundane. And tedious. Ever since the almost gang war between Ikebukuro's top elite, his priorities had changed. Well, that wasn't entirely true; they had changed, but not for anything better. He still wished to watch his humans suffer, but since Simon had… persuaded him, so to speak, he knew that things had to die down, if only for a moment, in Ikebukuro.

"Ah, but really, it's so boring~ What do you think I should do, Namie-chan?"

The one called Namie did not answer, did not even grace him with a glance. She seemed calm and collected, a valuable pawn to Izaya, but on the inside, she was seething. She absolutely despised being called Namie-chan (save for Seiji, if he ever said it) and hated it even more when the Izaya mentioned it. But honestly, she was glad to be able to finish her paperwork. Izaya's schemes always had a way of putting her behind work at Yagiri Pharmaceuticals; and according to her uncle, unless she started busting her ass off, she'd most likely lose her job. She had a sneaking suspicion that Izaya already knew that and that's why he was so adamant about interrupting her work. Things would become interesting if she lost her job and he knew it. Damned bastard.

"Maybe you should take a break," she said as she typed up file after file. "You know, find a woman who can take care of you. Clean your apartment. Or…" she smirked as she said this, "you could go work part time for that Russian Sushi place. I'm sure you could get plenty of entertainment there."

Izaya chuckled. "Ah, but Namie-chan~ I already have a job~ After all, you're my assistant, right? What if I stopped working when you lost your job? We both know it's inevitable." At Namie's incredulous look, Izaya continued happily, "What would you do then? Surely Seiji-kun wouldn't be impressed with a homeless, jobless sister. He'd have to fall in love with that Harima Mika, wouldn't he? Or maybe fall even more in love with that head~ After all, if I'm no longer an informant and you're fired from Yagiri Pharmaceuticals, well, that head could join some interesting company~"

Namie slammed her hand down on the desk. "That's none of your concern. Fine—you want an idea? Why not continue your war with that cursed blade, Saika? I know how much you despise that human loving sword, so why don't you get rid of it?"

Izaya placed his fingers on his chin, as though he was thinking deeply. Truth be told, she did have a valuable point, but he couldn't necessarily get rid of the blade forever. There were many possibilities of using Sunohara Anri, far too many for him to even consider, so completely destroying the blade would be pointless. And selling it? He might as well be handing an army to a beggar. Not that it wouldn't make for interesting entertainment, though.

Finally, just when Namie thought Izaya had finally shut up, he smirked. "That is an interesting idea, Namie-chan~ I'll look into it. Making Saika disappear—what a feat! Or maybe…" he smiled a shark's grin, "we could give it to a different host. I highly doubt that sword's picky, so finding another wielder wouldn't be an issue. Ah, so many ideas~ You've been a big help, Namie-chan!"

Namie growled. "Don't call me that." But Izaya simply smirked and put on his parka, a sign that he was going out. If Namie had known then how much her world would have changed, she would've taken her idea back. Not like it would've stopped Izaya from doing what he pleased, but at least she would've done something. But alas, she was more worried about her paperwork than some off-kilter genius informant.

XXX

_In her reality, she was a parasite._

_She was nothing, so she sucked the happiness of others for herself. Like a parasite, she was small and insignificant. Like a parasite, she was alone._

_But it did not bother her. This was simply how things were. They would not change, not for anything better or worse. Not like she wanted them to change._

_Like a parasite, she could not be loved. She was destroyed even before she had a chance to express anything, and the few that let her stay were unaware of how detrimental she actually was. It's simply people like these that simply need to…_

…_disappear._

XXX

"Ah! Sunohara-san!"

A young boy ran at top speed, his blue eyes clouded with suppressed tears. He had never been a ridiculously athletic individual, but once he had seen Sunohara Anri, he couldn't help running. She was one of his closest friends, save for Kida Masaomi, who had left after fighting the Yellow Scarves. This boy, this rather boring and mundane boy, was the one and only Ryugamine Mikado—the leader of the Dollars and best friends with the founder of the Yellow Scarves and the notorious Slasher.

"Ryugamine-kun." Mikado had finally reached her, but as of now, he was catching his breath. Really, how could people run for miles on end? He had barely run down three flights of steps and he was already feeling winded! Hoping he didn't appear like a lunatic on steroids, he smiled up at Anri.

"Is everything okay? You didn't come by the classroom this afternoon and I was worried." _Plus_, he added silently, _it's too weird walking home alone_. Ever since the Yellow Scarves incident, Mikado had despised being alone. It felt almost… surreal, in a sense, as if everything was like fragile glass, waiting to be broken. It wasn't far from the truth; ever since moving to Ikebukuro, Mikado's tedious days from back in Saitama never seemed to reappear. The peace was always being shattered, the days finding new twisted ways to hurt everyone he loved. That was the problem.

But also the solution.

Anri looked at him, her blank expression giving away nothing as per usual. There were so many thoughts running through her head though; everything, from Kida's sudden departure to Mikado's sudden change in attitude; from the threat of the Yellow Scarves to the mystery of the Dollars; everything buzzed around in her head like white noise. One thought stuck out more than the others.

_**I love humans. I love, love, LOVE humans! Humans are amazing—!**_

But like it had been for the last five years, she was able to drown out that voice. Something was strange though; lately, Saika seemed almost… eager, as if she knew something was coming. The feelings Anri got from the cursed blade (besides her adoration) were of anticipation, trepidation, and a little bit of happiness. Every time Anri tried to communicate with her though, the blade would get uncannily quiet. Sure, it was nice; after all, Anri finally had a break from the sadistic voice, the cruel taunting, the feeling of wanting to slice everything and everybody…

"Sunohara-san? Are you okay?"

Anri snapped out her trance, blinking her eyes in hopes of destroying those inane thoughts. "E-everything's fine."

Mikado didn't look convinced, but he decided to let it slide, mainly because he knew that if he pushed too hard, Anri would just close up. Then he really would have to walk home alone. "Well, in any case," he smiled, gesturing towards the sunset, "let's be on our way, shall we?"

She could only nod.

XXX

_People like these need to disappear._

_Forever. They need to simply go away._

_Be it by death, by abduction, by running away, it doesn't matter. They need to leave, go away, and never return. _

_**At least, that's what I've always thought.**_

XXX

It was a beautiful day. The birds were chirping, the sun was shining, and the trees were swaying with a gentle breeze. Flowers grew around a single well, butterflies meandered through the air, and rabbits hopped along the pasture, completely oblivious to everything. It was peaceful. Nothing could _**possibly **_go wrong—

"Inuyasha! SIT BOY!"

A loud, painful echo resounded through the trees, causing numerous birds to fly away in annoyance. The momentary peace was broken, destroyed, as a strange sight played out. A man, one with long silver hair, a red kimono, and a sword attached to his hip, was lying in the middle of the crater. That wasn't even the weirdest part. He also had two dog ears—two twitching dog ears—lying atop his head, somehow appearing completely natural. There was also a woman, one with shoulder length black hair, hazel eyes, and wearing a green school uniform, who was standing at the edge of the crater, her hands on her hips and her chest heaving from exertion. If God was looking down at the scene, it would've been strange indeed.

"Ow! What the hell was that for Kagome?!"

"I'm going home whether you like it or not! I have to make up school!"

"But we need to find the jewel shards!"

That was the wrong course of action. Heaving in another sigh, Kagome yelled, "SIT BOY!"

The crater deepened.

Taking a deep, calming breath, Kagome took her hands off her hips, knowing full well that yelling at Inuyasha would be like yelling at a brick wall. "I'm not just your Jewel Detector; I'm a human being too. I have a _**life**_, preferably back in my own time."

"We still need to get the jewel shards…"

Kagome took another deep breath, trying desperately to reign in her anger and reiterated, "I have to go, Inuyasha." At his dejected look, she continued hurriedly, "I mean, it's not like I'm gonna be gone forever or anything. I'll be back in three, four days max. You won't even know I'm gone."

Inuyasha opened his mouth, as though he had something to say, before he decided against it. He scowled instead. "Fine. I'll give you three days. But if you're not back in time…"

Kagome huffed, but smiled anyways. "I got it. I'll see you later, Inuyasha!" And with that, she jumped through the well, leaving the sulking Inuyasha behind.

XXX

"Mama! I'm home!"

Kagome made her way through the old fashioned shoji doors. She took her shoes off at the door as her mother came and greeted her, her matching hazel eyes smiling happily. Kun-loon Higurashi grabbed her daughter's empty yellow backpack, placed it behind her, and said, "There's a bath ready for you upstairs. Dinner will be ready soon as well. How have you been?"

Kagome smiled tiredly. "Fine, I guess. Inuyasha was being obstinate as usual; he was freaking out because I said I was leaving. Sometimes I feel like he forgets I actually have a life."

Her mother nodded. "That's just how boys are, honey. But I think you're not giving Inuyasha enough credit. Do you think maybe he just enjoys your company?"

Kagome gave a little chuckle, knowing full well that wasn't the reason. "Thanks Mama but I don't think that's it. I think I will go take that bath now."

Kun-loon smiled, happy her daughter seemed to be in better spirits, before a thought struck her. "Ah Kagome—there's something I have to tell you."

"What?"

Kun-loon bit her lip, not sure if she should share this tidbit of information, but knew she had to anyways. "Well, you see… Anri-chan is coming to visit this week and I think it'll be good for both you and her if you spent some time together—"

"What?! Mama, you can't be serious. You know I don't like Anri. I mean, sure, we're cousins, but ever since her parents died, she's been… well, Mama, she'd been weird. She's too quiet—"

"Kagome Higurashi," her mother boomed, the geniality gone from the atmosphere, "you will not speak about your cousin that way. Anri-chan's life hasn't been easy and you of all people should understand what it's like to lose a parent."

"But Mama—,"

"No 'buts'. Whether you like it or not, you and Anri will be spending time together. I'm sorry, Kagome, but if you plan on living in this house, then you're going to have to spend time with your cousin. Maybe you can get over all your differences if you spend some time together. Who knows?" She smiled and ruffled Kagome's hair. "Understand?"

Kagome lowered her head, but answered anyways with a, "Yes Mama. I promise to spend time with Anri. When is she visiting, anyways?"

A sheepish look came over Kun-loon's face—something Kagome decided that she did not like, not at all. Laughing nervously, Kun-loon replied, "Hehe… funny thing about that…"

"Mama?"

"She's um… she'll be here… tomorrow…"

"MAMA!"

Kun-loon went back into stern mother mode. "Now Kagome, remember what you promised me? It shouldn't matter when she's visiting or how long she's staying—you still have to spend time with her." Casually, as to not invoke suspicion, Kun-loon placed her hand on chin like she was in deep thought. "The water's probably getting cold. You wouldn't want to take a cold bath, would you?" Kagome noticed what her mother was doing, but she knew arguing would be pointless, so she decided to go against the snarky comment she had in mind. Sighing, she nodded.

"Yes Mama."

XXX

-Saika has entered the chat room-

-Taro Tanaka has entered the chat room-

**Taro Tanaka: Ah, good evenin' Saika-san. How've you been?**

Saika: I've been better. It seems my aunt wants me to pay a visit.

**Taro Tanaka: Oh?**

Saika: Yeah—something about not seeing her or my cousin for three years. I don't know why she cares so much, but I came to let you guys know that I won't be on here for a while.

**Taro Tanaka: Well, that sounds like fun, Saika-san! I hope you enjoy yourself :) **

Saika: Thank you, Taro-kun. That means a lot. But I keep feeling like something is going to go wrong…

-Setton has entered the chat room-

_Setton: Evenin' guys. How've ya been?_

_Setton: Wait…_

_Setton: You're leaving, Saika?_

Saika: Ah—good evening to you too, Setton-san. And yes—I'll be away at my cousin's house for a week or so. She lives in a small town, so it's probably going to be way different from 'bukuro O.O

**Taro Tanaka: Haha, probably! Can't imagine what you'd look like in a small town, Saika-san. **

_Setton: Definitely! Who knows, maybe something strange will happen! Like something out of a manga…_

Saika: I guess :) Well I gotta go guys. I still have a lot of packing to do :(

**Taro Tanaka: Night, Saika-san! Talk to you when you get back!**

_Setton: Yep, same! Night Saika!_

Saika: Night guys!

-Saika has left the chat room-

**Taro Tanaka: Well, I gotta go too! Talk to you later Setton-san!**

_Setton: Talk to you later!_

-Taro Tanaka has left the chat room-

-Setton has left the chat room-

…

-Kanra has entered the chat room-

_**Kanra: Helllllllloooooooooooo~ Anybody theeeeeeerrrrrrrreee?**_

_**Kanra: Well, looks like no one's on. How boring~**_

_**Kanra: Hmm~?**_

_**Kanra: Saika's leaving?**_

_**Kanra: How…interesting :D**_

-Kanra has left the chat room-

XXX

**Stay tuned for the next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2

**This is just perfect insanity.**

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN DRRR! OR INUYASHA! ALL RESPECTIVE CHARACTERS AND PLOTS BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTFUL OWNERS!**

XXX

**Chapter 2**

_There was red._

_So, so much red—so much red, in fact, that it rivaled the bloody sunset that illuminated the sky, rivaled a piece of a kimono that was hanging precariously in a nearby branch…_

_There were bodies._

_Bodies littered the ground—bodies of people she'd never seen, bodies that were mutilated beyond recognition, so many bodies. Their clothes were tattered, their weapons laid a good twenty feet away, and their eyes shined with the light of the dead. They were shocked, melancholic…_

…_and fearful._

_The red surrounded the bodies like some sort of demented halo, accentuating scratches from swords, wounds from claws, and the startling glassiness in their eyes. The girl gasped—she just realized what the red was._

_Blood._

_The girl covered her mouth and stepped back, only to feel her feet sink into something soft. Instead of turning around to check it out, she closed her eyes tightly, too afraid of the vision. She knew, somewhere in her panic induced state, that this was all a dream, a distortion of reality. _

_Just a dream._

_So then why did it feel so real? If it was just a dream, why could she smell the metallic scent of blood, feel the wind burn her face as though it was running away, feel the fleshy softness under her feet as she trampled over dead body after body…_

_A dark chuckle erupted behind her, something that sent shivers down her spine and caused the hairs on the back of her neck to stand up. That voice… there was something oddly familiar about it, but then again, there was nothing reminiscent about it at all. Despite all that, Anri knew that she did not like the voice._

_Or the feeling of hands as they grabbed her shoulders._

_For once, she could feel her stoic nature slipping away, only to be replaced by an indescribable fear. She opened her mouth to scream, hoping someone would rescue her, but no sound came out. The stranger took no notice of this, for he—she'd determined it was a 'he' by the stoutness of his chest, the large calloused hands that grasped her barely concealed skin—placed one of his burly hands over her mouth to stifle any noise. Then, with the scent of raw meat engulfing her senses, he spoke._

"_We meet again, cursed blade." Cursed blade. Anri shivered; even if this was a dream, why was she so perceptive, everything so vivid? And why would she be having a dream with Saika in it? Before she could ponder this any further, the voice, deceptively cruel and mocking, spoke again._

"_I've got you now. And this time, even Kikyo won't be able to stop me."_

XXX

Anri woke with a start.

Breathing heavily, she glanced around the room in mild confusion before she realized that no, she wasn't in a blood covered field, but rather her own bedroom. She could feel her heart hammering against her chest, almost hear it and she tried, in vain, to take calming breathes. It wasn't working. After a few more moments of failed attempts, she stood up and turned on a light.

Her small, quaint, though thoroughly adequate room graced her sight and she felt her anxious heart slow a beat. Taking in another deep breath, she leaned against the wall and glanced over at the clock. 2:15 A.M. Was it really that early?

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Anri's breathes returned to normal and she felt slightly better—not like that was saying much. She could still recall that dream, that dastardly dream, like a memory that hadn't been quite forgotten. But there was no way that was a memory—at least, she didn't think it was. It had the same surrealistic feeling that any of her other dreams had, but at the same time, it was like a message. Or a warning.

Did Saika have anything to do with it? Anri considered asking, but then decided against it. Not only did she dislike talking to the demon, but she also knew that Saika wouldn't answer anything, especially since she'd started acting weird. And while Anri's mental fortitude was immeasurable, she knew that even she would be at a disadvantage to the sword's manipulating ways. Until she calmed down completely, she had to have the upmost vigilance, no matter how hard or improbable it was. Speaking of which…

Why wasn't Saika responding? Any time she'd had a nightmare in the past, the blade would be there before she even woke up, tempting her with sweet words of nothingness, her own nightmarish visions. It had been hard, so terribly hard, but once Anri had gotten used to such things, she was able to all but drown out the sickly sweet voice. It was almost as if—

_**Humans.**_

The thought, so unperturbed and disconnected, hit Anri's brain like a freight train. One word, one god awful word that meant the world to a certain raving demon—

_**Humans.**_

Anri heard it again. She felt her temples throb, her body ache, and the hand that held the cursed blade begin to tremor. Though she was still far from losing control, she could sense—almost physically _feel_—that Saika was attempting to escape, attempting to garner control…

…attempting to beat Anri into submission.

"Wh-what are you doing?" she asked quietly, her perturbed gaze never leaving her blade. "What's wrong, Sai—"

_**HUMANS!**_

Anri grunted. The mental force of the word was so powerful that, for a second, she'd lost complete control. It was something eerily similar to her nightmare—a nightmare where she imagined that a cross-eyed, insane version of herself was laughing jovially, skipping around the fresh corpses of her friends, her enemies, her schoolmates, anybody. She'd bathe in their blood, finding the color astonishing, the feeling of adoration never leaving her chest. And then, just to show how much they meant to her, she would cut their heads off, slowly, and it was then that Anri realized that they were still barely breathing…

_That's enough!_

Just as quickly as it had happened, the vision stopped. Gasping, Anri clutched at her chest, almost losing control again in the process. But her resolve hardened; gathering all her fortitude, her power, her anger, her will to protect this world and the next… she calmed down. No matter what Saika did, no matter what happened, no matter how far into Hell Anri fell… she would not lose. Couldn't. That vision, though ludicrously terrifying and realistic, reminded her that she was just as susceptible to Saika's charms, her cunning poison. She knew what she had to lose—her friends, her freedom, her life—and her thoughts became all the more enamored, her resolution resounding through her body until Saika's whispery wails of 'humans' died away.

But even with all of this, Anri couldn't shake the bad feeling away from her chest. Something was about to happen, something awful—but she couldn't stop it. She could only pray that nothing like this ever happened again. She couldn't go on, barely holding on to Saika, and expect everything to be okay, everyone to be magically safe. Life didn't work like that.

Especially life with an eternally damned sword that was growing impatient for blood.

XXX

Kagome's eyes popped open.

She was greeted with the sight of her bland, pure-white ceiling, the comfort of her warm bed underneath her back, and the feeling of pure adrenaline as terrific thoughts raced through her head. Shifting so she was lying on her side, she was greeted with the moon, beautifully accentuating the desolate landscape of Tokyo at night—not a bloody, red-streaked sunset that was almost imprinted on her eyelids. Looking down through the window, she saw not bodies of her friends and allies littering the field like confetti, but a calm, serene light that seemed to light up her family's shrine. Yep, everything was entirely normal.

_That was definitely one weird dream_, Kagome decided. It had been so vivid, so bloody, so awfully horrific that she could still recall every single detail, every feeling, every emotion, every inch of blood. She could recall the unmistakable scent of Naraku—who had just recently been in his demonic arachnid form—and the strange sight of him almost cooing to someone else. Either the figure had been too far away or Kagaome had been less perceptive than she thought, but the lone woman—she could tell it was a woman by the petite frame, the short hair that hit just above her shoulders—she had not been able to see. From what she saw, Naraku seemed almost… giddy, as if he was a small child who had received everything he had desired for Christmas.

He had grasped the woman's shoulders. The woman, in turn, did not respond. He said something then—his face had a certain look to it, one that sent shivers down Kagome's spine—and then, much to the woman's reluctance and Kagome's horror, he turned the stranger around.

The first thing Kagome noticed was a blade. It was small, insignificant; hell, it didn't even look like it could cut a piece of paper, much less be an imposing weapon. But she knew looks were deceiving. Just like Inuyasha's blade, this sword gave a feeling of pure demonic energy. If Kagome focused, she could make out the red aura that surrounded the blade, the sure sign of demons… and power. For just a moment, Kagome imagined that Naraku, the despicable half-demon, had reconciled with the blade, and was ready to use its power.

The thought did not console her.

Slowly, ever so slowly, her eyes took in the mysterious form. It was still entirely blurry and Kagome was only able to make out a few certain characteristics; for example, she knew the girl had short black hair and her eyes were a haunting crimson, covered with glasses. The rest of her face was strangely blank and her body was so nondescript that the priestess had no idea what to make of it. It seemed that was all she could discern…

Wait. Kagome's eyes suddenly caught something. In the girl's mouth, three small, red tentacles were writhing, obviously displeased at being exposed…

So much for this girl not being a demon.

"I-Inuyasha," the frightened priestess had whispered, unable to take her eyes off the gruesome sight…

And then, without any prior warning, the dream had ended. Actually, what was probably more correct was that Kagome couldn't remember anything after calling for Inuyasha. She was sure, absolutely positive, that something had occurred, but her state of mind was saying otherwise. Glancing over at the clock, she realized that it read 2:15 A.M., way too early for even Feudal Era times. Really, she should be getting back to sleep.

She bit her lower lip and, without another thought, rose nimbly from her bed.

It creaked and she flinched; it'd been so long since she'd had a decent bed besides the cold, hard earth, covers instead of some travelling bed mat. Slowly, she shook her head, berating herself for being such a fool, and got what she had been going for.

The jewel shards.

The pink, singular shards in a small unblemished glass bottle gave off an ethereal light, being a small beacon in the sparsely lit room. In times of great struggle and fear, Kagome would grab the shards, holding them protectively while the calming souls of peace resounded around her. Right now, her heart was still hammering and she… well, not like she'd ever admit it, but she was afraid. Scared beyond words.

The young priestess grabbed the jar and fiddled around with it, thinking back to all her adventures in Feudal Japan. Some were pleasant—like meeting her friends for the first time, the first time that she admitted she loved Inuyasha, all the antics said man had created here in her time—while others were decidedly horrible. Certain events, like the first time she met Naraku and saw how formidable, how cruel he was; when she was captured by certain demons that would forever be etched in her memory; and when she saw Inuyasha and Kikyo together, professing their love, while she, like a foolish schoolgirl, hid in embarrassment behind a tree. But no matter what, no matter what she encountered, no matter how hurt she got, she would never wish to forget those memories. She would never want her life, her perfectly messed up life, to ever change because that's who made her as a person. And yet…

Something was on the horizon. Something big. And it was approaching quickly. Whatever 'it' was.

XXX

"La-lu-li-la-lu-li-laaa~"

"Rinko, be quiet, would you?! We're on an adventure!"

"B-but Taro-kun…! I don't wanna go see a rusty old sword! It's so BORING!"

"Quit complaining! Instead, you should be grateful that a cool, older boy like me is taking notice of a plain, boring girl like you." He gestured to her tattered appearance, from her shoulder length black hair to her dirty, ripped kimono. "See?"

Rinko blew her bangs up, exasperated, though she was smart enough not to push it. Taro was always like that. Pushy and bossy. But that's what she liked about him. That's simply what made Taro-kun Taro-kun after all.

"Fine. But are we almost there? It seems like we've walking FOREVER!"

Taro puffed his chest out, like a rooster whose pride had been ruffled. Pasting a smirk on his face, he said, "That's because you walk too slow, Rinko! Why, if I was by myself, I'd already been there AND back! You're the one slowing me down!"

Now, like the girls in the village, Rinko should've taken offense to that, telling Taro that he was being an ass and walked away. But Rinko wasn't like most girls in the village. She liked to think of herself as an individualist, someone who didn't follow what the other eight-years-olds did, including anything that pertained to Taro. Every girl in the village couldn't stand him.

So, unlike the other children, she smiled cherubically at Taro's remark, even letting out a small giggle as a crimson blush painted the other's cheeks. He noticed her chuckling and, embarrassed, he quickly made his way in front of her. Rinko smiled at his shyness, but said nothing except, "Of course you would have, Taro-kun. But I still don't think it should be taking this lon—" Suddenly, she stopped as she ran into Taro's back. "T-Taro-kun?"

But he wasn't listening. No, something had the boy enraptured, pulled in by an unknown force. Rinko, short as she was, attempted to peak over his shoulder, but it was to no avail. She couldn't see a thing, except for the trees that swayed overhead.

Taro still hadn't answered her.

Rinko huffed, though it was decidedly lacking venom, and said, "Taro-kun, what's going on? Why'd you stop?"

As if snapping out of a trance, Taro slowly turned towards her, his movements forced and slow, like he was in a pool of molasses. "Uh…"

She pouted, remembering what one of the older gossiping ladies had said about girls who pouted: boys couldn't get enough of them. Taro still seemed a little out of it though, so after a moment, she stopped before asking, "Taro-kun… Why'd you stop? Is something the matter?"

"I… don't remember…"

Rinko cocked her head, confused. "Don't remember what?"

"I… ah…" He grasped his head and it was only then that Rinko realized he was in horrendous pain. "Ah… Mother… I-I'm sorry…" His knuckles were turning white, that's how hard he was grasping his head. "Y-you're right… I'll do you well, Mother."

Rinko felt a sliver of fear race through her spine. "T-Taro-kun…?"

She was suddenly met with the frightening visage of red eyes.

"T-Taro-kun…!"

Screams could be heard throughout the forest.

XXX

**Please review! It'll mean a lot. And stay tuned for next Monday for chapter three!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Activist duties are GO!**

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN THE FANTABULOUS WORLDS OF INUYASHA OR DURARARA! ALL CHARACTERS BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS!**

XXX

**Chapter 3**

The sky was painted an awesome red.

"Th-there's n-no one l-left… Oh God… Mama, Papa, Taro-kun… where are you?! I p-promise I'll be a good girl, so p-please—come back! I'm begging you…" A young girl, no older than eight, was crying, alone, in a village. Or at least, so she thought.

"_Are you lost, little one?"_ The small girl glanced up, her hazel eyes reflecting the terrible scene around her: dozens of dead, mutilated bodies—family, friends, even her beloved Taro-kun—they all littered the ground in a parody of their lives, their mouths open in a silent scream, their skin as white as death. She shivered. It wasn't true! It couldn't possibly be true!

And the woman. The woman was so beautiful, with her dark midnight hair that flowed casually down her back, her burnt auburn eyes that took in the scene around her with a sense of… actually, Rinko wasn't sure what to make of her expression. It was somewhere between adoring—an adoration so great it rivaled looks of devout priests that would, from time to time, pass through the village—and an almost shocked reverence, as if the woman hadn't expected such disaster. Whatever it was, Rinko decided, she knew she did not like it.

That didn't make her any less lonely.

"Y-yes," she sobbed out, stubbornly wiping away tears as they fell. "M-my family… they were… they were…"

The woman grinned maliciously, a parody of a caring smile on her perfect face. _"Slaughtered, little one. Your family was slaughtered. Say it with me. They're __**dead**__."_

Rinko shook her head pitifully. "No…"

"_But they are little one. They are dead and they left you—you, a poor defenseless child—all by herself in the world. What will happen now, hm? Will you stay here until a demon comes, enticed by the scent of blood, and be devoured whole? Will you starve? Or, with a stupid carelessness, will you try to reach another village? Even if you did,"_ she pointed angrily at the corpses, a manic grin on her face, _"even if you did, no one will help you. No one will hear your cries. __**No one will save you**__."_

By this time Rinko was silent, her sobs having been reduced to spine-wracking shudders. What this woman said… it was the truth, an absolute horrific truth, something she couldn't deal with. Couldn't the woman see that she was already in so much pain? Why couldn't she just go away?! Then Rinko could decide on how to die. Because Rinko knew. She wasn't brave or smart, quick or forgiving. She was just a penniless eight-year-old girl whose only family was gone, destroyed. Even Taro-kun… And she knew if she didn't kill herself soon, a demon would come, just like the woman said. By then it'd be too late.

By then she'd be at the mercy of some capricious demon, praying to God to be killed quickly. She couldn't live like that. As soon as that woman left, Rinko would be no more.

The woman, seeming to slip between cruel and compassionate, bent down until she was eye to eye with the sobbing eight year old. Gently, almost like a mother, she grabbed the girl by the shoulders and forced her to look at her. _"But see little one… I would never leave you. If you make a deal with me, I will be with you for many years to come. I could save you."_

"D-deal?"

Saika smirked. "_It is a simple deal. You must simply surrender yourself—your mind, your body, your soul—to me." _She grasped the child in a tight hug. _"I'll be forever with you, child. Now, what is your answer?"_

Rinko felt a strange sense of calm wash over her and, against her will, relaxed in the woman's embrace. She had a point. Why should she kill herself? She didn't do anything—no, it was _their _fault. Her family left her, alone. What did they think was going to happen? That she'd just sit around and wait until something appeared, be it man or beast? Did they think she was strong, loving? No. No, she wasn't. That's why she didn't even hesitate. "I accept. Please Mother… please be with me always."

She felt a familiar sword grasped securely in her hand and comfort as her Mother led her far, far away.

XXX

"WIND SCAR!"

A blinding bright light illuminated the clearing, obliterating everything in its path—which happened to be a large arachnid demon with a taste for human blood. It had recently decimated a small village—the smell of blood still hung fresh in the air, burning Inuyasha's nose—and had fed on the villagers, engulfing them whole with its fanged mouth. Nobody had survived.

Overhead, a woman and a monk simply rolled their eyes. "Couldn't he have been a little more discreet? One of these days…"

It was the woman, a fierce looking girl with long chestnut hair and amethyst eyes, accentuated only by a tight black suit and a large boomerang on her back. The other, the man, his dress was worlds apart; wearing traditional monks' clothing, he held a staff in one hand and a necklace of prayer beads on the other. His hair was short, barely longer than his shoulders, and his hazel eyes watched the girl with amusement. "Sango, that's just Inuyasha. Besides, you know how strange he gets when Lady Kagome leaves. Of course, he isn't lucky to have a woman like you…"

Sango felt a familiar pressure on her butt. She bit her lower lip, furious. WHY couldn't the monk keep his hands off her?! It was bad enough she had to deal with a depressed Inuyasha and continue to look for her brother, but seriously? She had to deal with a sex-deprived monk who didn't know the meaning of "personal space?"

She'd fix that. A moment later, Miroku was sporting a large red handprint on his cheek. He rubbed it sheepishly and said, "Ah, my dear Sango… Well, I got to experience it once more. That's all a living man can do in this world." He laughed. "Not living with regrets, that's what I always say!"

Soon the other cheek sported a red handprint as well. Sango, ready to drop the monk off of Kirara's back, flew towards the earth.

"Doesn't he ever learn?" a floating, ball of… er, fox fire said, rolling his eyes as he did. He, too, followed the feuding couple down to the earth before he changed into his actual form, a small boy around the age of ten with a twitching fox tail and wide green eyes. Don't be fooled though—this boy, unlike the feuding couple, was a demon, the only full-blooded one in the group. The other demon, Inuyasha, wasn't quite so lucky. No, by some chance of fate's intervention or perhaps simple karmic bad luck, his mother—a human—had fallen in love with his father—a demon. Regardless, he was good man.

Well, sometimes.

"Inuyasha!" Miroku called, his jovial mood from earlier dispersing like fog on a mountainside. Hopping off Kirara, he began jogging to the half-demon, before slowing at the sight of all the bodies. It was so sad, really. All these people, all this blood… it was times like these that Miroku almost regretted being a monk. Almost. Unfortunately, someone had to bury them. "Inuyasha. Find a shovel and we'll start burying all these people." The scent was getting unbearable—Miroku had to cover his nose to suppress the putrid fumes. "Hurry up. If you don't, we might miss Lady Kagome's arrival."

"Tch! I know already! Don't need to give me shit," he cursed, though his posture was relaxed, not at all as hostile as his words. "Besides, I think I saw a shovel in one of the nearby huts. I'll go and check." And with that, he left—but not before coughing at the smell of death. With his heightened sense of hearing and scent, he was able to find enemies fairly quickly—but he also could smell some pretty vile things at times. For example, this time he was able to smell the metallic blood, the spider demon's disintegrating corpse, and the scent of soiled trousers and emptied stomachs.

He was smelling fear and he didn't like it.

So it was no surprise that he was ready to bury these bodies and go back to Bone Eater's Well, where he had taken a sort of… vigilance, as he waited for Kagome to return back to their time. The quicker they got this done, the better. Retracing his memories, he made his way to a far hut at the end of the village and saw the aforementioned gardening tool, sitting in all its glory on the bare, parched earth. Satisfied, he went to grab it, before a sound stopped him cold.

A breath. A shaky, terrified breath. And the scent of blood was even stronger than before.

He growled lowly. So there were still demons in the area? Strange, considering he hadn't smelled any, but now that he was focusing, he could smell… something. Not quite a demon, not quite a human… what was it? It was different from his smell too; if anything, it resembled Kikyo's scent, strange as that may seem. It wasn't her, surely, but it had the same smell of death, the same smell of soul gatherers, albeit a tad differently.

He drew Tessaiga. The feeling of power resonated in his palms and he could tell—almost imagine—his sword was irked by this… other demon. It wished to destroy it, to consume it, because it knew… something. Not surprisingly, his sword was being cryptic.

"Come out, you big ugly…" He stopped as a sob echoed through the air. Deciding that it definitely sounded like a human girl, he ran into the hut, all thoughts of precaution thrown to the wind. He was expecting to see a large demon or someone with a jewel shard or even Naraku…

…but instead, he found a human girl. A young human girl. And she was alone. Crying.

Feeling ridiculous, he blushed and placed Tessaiga back into its holder. "Hey kid; you alright? What are you doing out here all by yourself?"

It took a moment for the girl to speak, but when she did, her voice was timid. "I-I don't know. O-one minute, m-my family and I w-were simply p-playing, but then… oh God, but then…!"

Inuyasha's patience snapped. "Look kid, stop the waterworks. My friends are a little ways down, so why don't you come with us? We got some food and were heading back to another village anyways…" Inuyasha was going to continue, but the kid was giving him this weird look, like she'd found a new toy or something. It was a little unsettling, to say the least.

The girl, still crying, nodded. "O-okay… I'll go with you." But if Inuyasha had been paying any attention, any at all, he wouldn't have missed the flash of red eyes or the girl's insane smile.

XXX

"Master Totosai…! Master Totosai…!"

"Mmm, go away, would you? I'm sleeping."

"Master Totosai, you answered," the person from before deadpanned. "And anyways, this is important. It has to do with that cursed blade, Saika."

"Hmm? What about it? I'll have you know that the blade is in a sacred village, far away from demon interaction. Well, not like a demon can use it… But that priest should be watching it!" And with that, he spit fire at his apprentice. "Now go away, Gisho! I'm trying to sleep and I don't need you interrupting me for every little thing!"

The young fox demon just barely dodged the fire. "But Master Totosai…! That priest is dead! Someone killed him and took the blade!"

For a moment everything was silent. Then he heard a loud bang, like someone had fallen out of a bed and hurried footsteps. Soon he was met with the sight of his rushing mentor.

"Why didn't you tell me, Gisho?! This isn't good, not at all… I'll have to go find it! I worry what could happen with that blade running amok…"

"What could happen, Master Totosai?"

Totosai, who'd been too engrossed in his own thoughts, jumped in shock. "Don't scare me like that Gisho! …And it's none of your concern. Watch my shop for me while I'm gone!" And with that, he flew off on his trusted demon bull, MoMo, leaving a flabbergasted apprentice behind.

Finally, Gisho said, "Isn't that just because you don't know yourself…?"

He decided not to dwell on that.

XXX

"What's your name, little one?"

The girl stared up at the kind-eyed monk and blushed; he really looked like Taro-kun this close and she wanted to just reach out and touch him, touch Taro-kun, bring him back… But no. Her Mother would not allow it. "M-my name's R-Rinko…"

"Ah, a splendid name! I'm sure that in a few years, you'll blossom into a fine, beautiful woman, sure to make any man proud! Which makes me wonder if you'd be so kind to bear my children…"

Sango took her boomerang and hit him on the back of his head. "She's already traumatized enough; she doesn't need your harassment." Sango smiled towards Rinko. "Well Rinko, we're heading back to a village in a bit. Are you coming with us?"

Rinko, whose eyes had been wide as saucers, shook her head slowly. "I-I can't… Mother won't let me." Giving a spine-chilling glare to Inuyasha, she growled, "And she really dislikes your sword, half-demon. But what Mother wants, Mother gets. I've no need to keep her from it."

"Mother?" the InuTaichi asked in perfect unison. "What mother? Didn't you say your mother was murdered…?"

The little girl laughed, her voice shrill and demented. Crazy. "Not that mother, silly; my other mother. My mother, Saika. She just loves humans."

And she drew her sword, eyes slowly becoming the color of blood.

XXX

**Hope you enjoyed it! And please review! Next chapter focuses on the fight between Saika and Inuyasha! Stay tuned!**


	4. Chapter 4

**I'm so sorry this was late. Thanksgiving and family and Black Friday all got in the way… yeah. I have no life.**

XXX

**Chapter 4**

Inuyasha jumped to the side, barely missing the sword that seemed to materialize out of nowhere.

Using his momentum, he stepped backwards and twisted to the side, hoping to at least get some breathing room—but was useless. The girl, if he could even call her that, was a never-ending typhoon of childish fury, the sword striking out in magnificent figure eights and diagonal slashes. She sliced her sword directly at his head, causing him to duck and roll, duck and roll, duck and roll, before he was stopped by a large tree in the middle of the clearing. It shook, but after a terrifying moment where Inuyasha was sure it was going to collapse, it resumed its rigid stance. He heaved a sigh of relief, grateful.

Only for a moment, though. Now wasn't really the time to be getting distracted, after all.

Quick as lightning, he got back onto his feet and placed Tessaiga as a type of barrier between him and the girl. Rinko cocked her head—not fearful, but curious—as he circled around her. It was almost like… no, that couldn't possibly be it. What would she be listening to? There wasn't anybody there.

"Who are you?" Inuyasha asked, his golden gaze focused on his opponent. "Are you a demon?"

Finally, she said in a voice that was not her own, **"My name is Saika—and the question of whether or not I'm a demon, well, you'll just have to decide on your own~"** She giggled, waving her hands around as though she was describing some inane theory to a child. After a moment of gleeful laughter, her gaze hardened. **"Well, as much as I would like to stay and chat, I've got to run. Bye bye!"**

Inuyasha was confused, though it only lasted for a moment as he realized that no, Rinko wasn't running away—or Saika, or whoever the hell that was—but rather, she was running straight for Miroku and Sango, like a thirsty man to an oasis of water. He cursed, watching her raise the sword vertically, her red eyes glistening with glee and hatred, love and chaos, understanding and insanity.

He hated it.

He also knew very well that he had the power, the determination, to end this once and for all. Smirking, he ran with a burst of speed he hadn't he known he possessed and effectively cut her off. Rinko stopped, her body no longer lax and curious, but angry and indignant. Maybe she would actually fight him for real this time and not attack his friends like a coward.

Inuyasha leveled Tessaiga at his opponent. "Look, I don't care who you are or the hell you _think_ you are, but if you attack my friends, you've crossed a line. WIND SC—"

Before Inuyasha could finish, he heard Miroku yell, "Inuyasha don't! That girl's possessed! If you use your Wind Scar, she'll die!"

"Wha—"

But it was too late. The split moment's hesitation was all Rinko needed before she slid underneath Inuyasha's legs, kicking out to hit his crotch in the passing crossfire. He grunted and she laughed, her laughs the carefree sounds of a child, as she leapt and did a somewhat somersault towards the only humans in the area. Miroku took some of his sutras and threw them, but still on all fours, the girl dodged them easily and reared to the side. He didn't have any time, no time at all, as she lifted her blade, perfectly prepared to take off his head, cut through the soft bone and meat like it was nothing—

A trickled of blood hit Miroku's face, causing him to open the eyes he hadn't known he'd closed. Sango, his precious, beautiful Sango, was standing in front of him, her eyes unwavering, sporting a small cut on her right cheek. Miroku stared, uncomprehendingly, before realization hit him. She saved him! Sango had saved him!

The little girl stared at Sango in annoyance—she opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it as she cocked her head to the side. Miroku took his chance. Grabbing his few remaining sutras, he uttered a quick prayer and threw them on the girl, point blank.

It was like she'd hit an electrical fence.

The girl screamed and screamed and screamed, her red eyes flashing from hazel to scarlet to hazel again. She attempted to remove the sutras—Miroku was shocked to note that she was still actually moving—but once her hand came in contact with them, she screamed even more, the pain astounding, bruising. Spent, the girl fell to the ground, her eyes returning to a more natural brown, but not before uttering a chilling warning. **"Houshi-sama, it's terrible, isn't it? **_**You no longer have an ally."**_ And with that, the demon's voice left and the air, having gotten thicker during the fight, returned to normal. Miroku breathed a sigh of relief, but try as he might, he couldn't shake the feeling that this wasn't the last time he'd see this demon.

_No, I'm just being paranoid_, he reasoned as he grasped his staff in his left hand. _We run into demons all the time, most of them who are too powerful for the sutras to do anything against. Nothing's going to happen. Still… it'll be better if I keep my eye on things. _He gave Sango a weary glance. _I can't always rely on her to protect me._

Satisfied, he went over to check on his comrades, so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't even notice the lone figure in the trees. This figure… he'd been watching this entire time, waiting, waiting—anticipating. And then, before anyone could notice, he jumped away, careful to keep his presence masked as he shifted from tree to tree. He'd heard the wailing, the pain, the euphoria of the demon, the blade—_**his**_ blade. He could feel, almost _taste_, her disdain for Tessaiga and its wielder; feel the way she tried to overcome that child, the way she tried to bend the very soul to her will; but more than anything, he could feel her crying out for him, for him to take her and kill all the humans that she loved so dearly…

Saika was going according to plan. He smirked. _Soon, my precious blade… we'll be reunited very soon…_

And then, Naraku laughed.

XXX

"Mama! Why didn't you wake me up?! Anri's going to be here in a few minutes and I don't even have my teeth brushed!" A loud thud echoed through the house and a muffled curse followed closely after. "Oh, great! Now I just dropped my toothbrush in the toilet and I'm out of tooth paste! Today's just perfect!"

Kagome heard her mother sigh. "Well, if you remember, I _did _wake you up—several times in fact—but every time I did, you shooed me away. Honestly, Kagome, how anyone could ever live with you is beyond me."

Kagome resisted the childish urge to stick out her tongue and yelled back, "They survived with me just fine, thank you very much! I'm so sorry that I overslept on my warm, comfy bed after I'd been sleeping on hard ground for a month!" She huffed, clearly spent. "Can you just entertain Anri for a few minutes, Mama? I promise I'll be done really soon." Then Kun-loon heard something that sounded suspiciously like, "Of course, I wouldn't be having this issue if Anri wasn't coming to visit. Honestly, it's such a pain in the ass—"

Before Kun-loon could roll her eyes, the doorbell rang. "Oh, Kagome, she's here! Once you're done getting ready, come downstairs, 'kay?" She heard a muffled acquiescence and, satisfied, she went to greet their guest.

"Hello, Anri-chan! Welcome back! How have you been?" Anri, who had looked almost like a deer caught in the headlights, blinked her eyes a few times before she nodded. It broke Kun-loon's heart to watch her nod, almost as if she wasn't certain if Kun-loon was there or not. That, the Higurashi mother mused, was probably the main reason her own daughter didn't like her. Ever since Sayaka's death, the girl had been a shadow of her former self. Before, when she was younger, she would be a happy, giggling twelve-year-old. She and Kagome would often stay up into the late hours of the night, talking, gossiping—they were like best friends, those two. But now…

"…I've been fine, Auntie. And you…?"

"Hmm? Oh, same old, same old." She laughed. "Don't just stand there—come in, come in! Kagome's upstairs getting ready, but she'll be down in a few minutes, so until then, make yourself at home!" She clapped her hands together like a small child. "I'll go start breakfast!"

After a long, drawn out moment, Anri nodded. She watched her aunt walk away and, certain that she was gone, breathed a sigh of relief. Her aunt, though she meant well, was a little overbearing—she had been ever since Anri was a little kid. Of course, she seemed more overbearing now than ever, but Anri didn't know if it was because she hadn't seen her in a while or the fact that she was now the proud owner of the one and only Saika. "Auntie sure is strange."

"You're strange yourself. You know talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity, right?"

Anri's head snapped up, only to be met with the searing gaze of her cousin, Kagome. _Kagome._ The word sent some strange emotions through her—happiness, disbelief, dislike—but the strongest one of all didn't even have a word. She was just… there, just hopelessly there, glaring at Anri like she was some sort of bug. When had things become like this?

"K-Kagome," Anri said, her eyes never leaving her cousin's face. "H-how have y-you b-been…?"

Kagome didn't do anything as juvenile as flipping her hair or rolling her eyes, but her glare did seem to intensify. "Fine, I guess." She looked at her fingernails as if they were the most interesting things in the world. "And you…?"

Anri swallowed her nerves. "I've been fine… I guess. I… um, well, I…" She turned her head, hoping to avoid Kagome's glare. "I'm sorry, Kagome."

"Huh? Why?"

She wrung her hands together. "Um, well, you see… I feel like you're mad at me, but I'm not sure why…" She bowed. "So for that, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bother you."

Kagome scoffed, though she silently berated herself for letting her emotions show so easily. "You didn't do anything, Anri. So don't apologize, ne~?" And though Kagome's words were light, her smile was not. Anri could tell, almost instantaneously, that it was forced. But that was okay, wasn't it? After all, she was a parasite, a disease to this world and the next. Nobody was supposed to like her.

The pang that went through her chest said otherwise. It was time to change the subject. "Where can I put my stuff?" She indicated towards the bright yellow duffle bag she'd brought with her that sat precociously at the front door. "I don't want it to be in anybody's way."

Kagome's smile only got larger. "Oh, of course!" Then, to Kun-loon, "Mama, I'm taking Anri to her room! We'll be down for breakfast in a few minutes!"

"Ah, Kagome! Wait!" Kun-loon entered the living room, wiping her hands off a dish towel hanging at her waist. "Anri's staying in your room tonight because Grandpa left most of his shrine things in the guest room. I hope you don't mind too much."

Kagome bit her lower lip to keep her smile in place. She was almost positive she drew blood. "Y-yes, Mama. Anri can sleep with me tonight—I don't mind." She turned towards Anri. "Are you ready?" You could cut the tension in the room with a knife.

The young Saika blade nodded and grabbed her luggage, more than happy to leave the suffocating atmosphere behind. Of course, it wasn't as though being with Kagome was any less suffocating. Kagome, as soon as she was away from her mother, had dropped her smile, the same cold look of indifference pasted on her face. Anri didn't like it all that much, but she didn't necessarily _dislike_ it either. It was similar to the times she'd been with Mika; though she seemed happy and hadn't voiced her dissent, Anri always knew that she was a being a nuisance. Mika was only friends with her because she wanted to look better—Kagome was only tolerating her because she didn't want to look bad in front of her mother. They were the same, Anri knew. But so, so different.

Kagome cleared her throat. "We're here." She gestured towards the room, her movements stiff. "If you need me for anything, just let me know. I'm gonna head down for breakfast now." She gave Anri a bored look. "Can you unpack on your own?"

Anri nodded. "Y-yes. Thank you." And though she bowed again, she knew that it was ignored as Kagome was already halfway down the steps. Anri stared after her for a few moments before she simply entered the room. It was no use thinking about her cousin's motives. Mika or not, there was still something Anri did not like about Kagome. She couldn't wait for this visit to end so she could return to Ikebukuro—

_**Humans.**_

_Not again_, Anri thought, as she dropped her bag and grasped her head. _Oh God, not again_.

_**Humans.**_

_Saika, please stop. You can't do this._

She hadn't expected an answer from the blade, but the dead silence that followed was anything but relieving. Had Saika… stopped for her? Saika had never stopped for her before, so why…?

…_**It's here.**_

_Huh?_ Anri slowly stood up, her earlier confusion forgotten, the pain in her temples subsiding to a dull roar. "It's here? But what's 'it'…?"

And then, as laughable as it was, she noticed three small shards glowing softly. They were a bright, almost translucent pink, sitting precariously in a jar on Kagome's desk. Forgetting all about Saika's strange behavior, Anri slowly made her way over, feeling… that same indescribable feeling pulling her in, washing her out. Like a tide on the ocean, she was being pulled deeper and deeper, but yet, she was still floating, floating between the illusion of safety and the reality of death. Her footsteps carried her closer and closer, her hand so willing to grab the beautiful shards—

Anri stopped.

"W-what was that?" she heaved, her chest feeling like it was going to burst with each shaky breath. "What was I about to do…?"

"Anri! Breakfast is getting cold!" Kun-loon yelled. "You can unpack later after you eat!"

Yes. Maybe that's what it was. Maybe Saika was able to take control because Anri hadn't had a fully decent meal in the past week and she was weak. Maybe after a good home-cooked meal, she'd feel better. Maybe. "I'm coming, Auntie!"

But all the maybes in the world didn't quite explain why she grabbed the shards and placed them in her pocket.

XXX

_Master…_

_You're here… _

_It's been so long, Master…_

_I'm… so happy…_

_Master… let's love my humans together._

XXX

**Yay! Another chapter done! I'm getting really close to the end of the stuff I had prewritten, so you should probably expect more sporadic updates fairly soon. I hope you liked this chapter and stay tuned for chapter five!**


	5. Chapter 5

**My God… what the fuck has the world come to? First Al-Qaeda has a twitter, then there's a shooting in an Oregon mall, then some shitface decides to go and shoot a classroom full of five-year-olds and his own mother. I just don't know anymore. Prayers go out to those families and their loss. Sometimes, I really hate people.**

**DISCLAIMER: *INSERT CUTE DISCLAIMER HERE***

XXX

**Chapter 5**

-Saika has entered the chat room-

Saika: Cut

Saika: Love

Saika: Hate

Saika: Kagome

Saika: Cut

Saika: Love

Saika: Cut

Saika: Humans

Saika: Love

Saika: Hate

Saika: Kagome

-Saika has left the chat room-

XXX

It was silent—broken only by the occasional scrape of silverware, sometimes the occasional request for more. Regardless, it was awkward and Kun-loon glanced helplessly between her niece and her own daughter. Sighing, she placed her fork down and gave Anri her warmest smile. "So Anri, how has life been in Ikebukuro? I mean, it's a very big city—"

Kagome rolled her eyes. "Mama, Anri's trying to eat right now. Why don't we question her once she's done?" At her mother's silence, Kagome glanced up from her food, only to be met with a searing look that promised they'd talk about this later. Kagome barely suppressed a shiver. "What?"

"…Nothing." Turning away from Kagome, Kun-loon smiled encouragingly at the other occupant of the table, trying to convey her interest. "So, Anri-chan?"

Anri glanced at her plate, trying desperately to get away from the intense stares of the others at the table. "It's… been fine. I mean, school's okay and the city isn't too big, so I don't get lost." She looked out the window as though her answers would lie there. "Everything's been fine."

Kun-loon wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "Hmm, is that all? I figured you would've had a boyfriend by now, Anri-chan." She giggled as Anri's blush deepened. "Or is it that you actually do and just aren't telling us…?"

"No," she replied quickly, probably too quickly in retrospect. "No. I don't have anyone like that."

Kun-loon looked slightly deflated and surprisingly, so did Kagome. "Ah~ What a pity." Her eyes took on a strange new glint. "Well, is there anybody you like?" Though Anri didn't answer directly, her blush said it all. Kun-loon smirked in triumph. "Aha! So there is! Who is it? Come on, you can tell me."

Anri gave her aunt a strange look before she said, "I don't have anyone like that either. At least," she furrowed her brow, "well, at least, I don't think I do. How do you know if you like somebody?"

Kun-loon blinked her eyes repeatedly, as if not expecting such an answer, while Kagome was completely shell-shocked. How could you not know if you like somebody? That was insane! It was like saying you didn't know if you were breathing or not. It just wasn't natural!

Kun-loon gave a thoughtful hum. She was staring out the window, as if she was watching her memories play out in front of her on a cinematic screen. "Hmm~ Well, I know when I fell in love with my husband, it was like… oh, I don't know, it was like everything he said made me happy. My heart would always flutter a lot when he was around and I just… knew." She gave Anri an appraising look. "I just knew that I wanted to be with him."

Kagome felt a sheer blush grace her cheeks. Yes, that's exactly how she felt. Inuyasha… okay, he could be brash, he could be rude, he could be arrogant, he could even be stupid… but despite all that, despite all those flaws, she still loved him. She loved his will to never give up—to protect his friends as though he was protecting his own life—and she loved his absolute need to prove himself through helping others. She loved that, even though they fought, she could still laugh with him, still have meaningful conversations and he could still care for her. He never abandoned her, not to the slimiest of demons or even in anger, just like he protected everyone else. He was kind, loving—she loved him. She loved him so much.

"…Mhmm." She hadn't realized she'd spoken until Kun-loon gave her a surprisingly gentle look, as if urging her to continue. She looked at Anri, for once no glare attached. "Mama's right. You just… know you love someone. You don't want to leave them, you don't want to see them get hurt, but more than anything, you can't imagine life without them. It's like," Kagome put her hair behind her ear, looking at something that was not quite there, "it's like they've filled a part of you that you didn't even know was empty. They complete you, almost." She giggled nervously at Anri's blank look. "Does that make any sense?"

Unperturbed, Anri thought of those two boys—Masaomi and Mikado—those two boys who claimed they loved her. Did she love them? Did she love even one of them? Did they feel like this, like Kagome, whenever she was around? Or, perhaps more pressing, did she? What exactly did she feel when they were around? She thought long and hard about it, but she couldn't place any words with the feelings. Comfort? No, she hadn't felt that since she was little, when her dad hadn't been a drunk, when she hadn't known about the cursed blade. Then, what about enjoyment? Did she enjoy being around them? She honestly didn't know, but she couldn't tell Kagome that. This small truce of peace, no matter how quaint or surprising, was too important to be broken by Anri's ignorance.

"…I see." Anri still did not look convinced, but then again, Kagome hadn't expected her to. "Do you have someone you love, Kagome?"

Kagome blinked her eyes once, twice, a third time before she felt her face go as hot as the sun. "Uh… ah, uh… I… guess… I guess I do…" Her gaze hardened as her resolve strengthened. "I do. I do love someone."

Anri, for once in her life, understood. She felt a small smile tug at the corners of her mouth as she said, "I see. Then he must be very lucky indeed." And for once, Kagome had nothing to say.

The rest of the breakfast was eaten in comfortable silence.

XXX

"Master Inuyasha! Master Inuyasha!"

Said dog demon felt the familiar sting against his cheek and, without a thought, slapped it away. The aforementioned speck fell away, seemingly dead, before he landed on the ground right beside Inuyasha's feet. "M-master Inuyasha…"

"Huh? Oh, I didn't see you there Myoga."

"I-it's okay… I am but a simple servant to my lord…"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, knowing full well it was pointless reprimanding the flea. "What do you want, Myoga? Can't you see I'm busy?" And busy he was; ever since his fight with Saika, Inuyasha and the rest of the InuTaichi had been making their way back to the Bone Eater's Well, young blade and all. Somewhere along the way, she'd woken up and had started squirming in her bindings in fear, but to no avail. Inuyasha had been very sure to make those ropes as strong as he could, having no desire to fight against the possessed human once again. Finally, giving an indignant huff, she went lax in the ropes, accepting whatever fate these strange people had in store for her. However, once she saw the talking flea, her eyes went impossibly wide and her struggles began anew. What if these people were taking her to a demon?! Now she had to get away!

Myoga's eyes grew to the size of saucers. "M-master Inuyasha! Why is there a young human girl tied up in such a manner?! I know you miss Mistress Kagome, but you mustn't take it out on such a young child—!" Inuyasha stepped right on the raving flea, being careful to dig his heal in for emphasis, and continued walking as if it was nothing.

"H-how cruel, my Lord."

"Look Myoga," Inuyasha stopped his procession as he turned to glare at the flea. "I asked you this once and I don't like asking it again. What do you want? You never follow us because you're always too scared, so you must want something." At Myoga's silence, he cocked a brow. "Well?"

"…It worries me that my Lord reads me so well. But no matter!" His exuberance caught Inuyasha off guard. "I have come to deliver very important information from Master Totosai!"

This caught Inuyasha's attention. "Totosai sent you? For what?"

The flea gave a sheepish look towards the earth, as if embarrassed. "Er, you see… he didn't send me directly, per say…" He shook his head feverishly. "But that doesn't mean that this isn't important or that I don't have any right to tell you about it! It's—"

Myoga was shocked to see Inuyasha kept walking. "Later." He waved a hand behind his head and dragged the girl along, like a cow led to the slaughter, as Myoga stared open-mouthed at his departure. He didn't even listen! He hadn't listened to a word he'd said!

Still, Inuyasha was still his Lord and charge, so he couldn't get angry, no matter how hard that seemed to get. Sighing, he ran after his Lord and jumped on his robe, carefully sitting on his collarbone so he could talk to him without the threat of being trampled on. "Lord Inuyasha, this is absolutely pertinent that you hear this. Master Totosai… well, he's worried. Apparently one of the blades he constructed is missing from its village and he's afraid it might've fallen in the wrong hands—"

Inuyasha, without any warning, came to a complete stop. Myoga flailed and flailed, hoping to find purchase in the smooth neck, but it was no use. He face-planted into the ground, tasting the bitter dirt as it filled his mouth, when Inuyasha said, "This blade… it doesn't happen to be called Saika, right?"

"Y-yes, that's the name but how did you know—"

There was a dangerous glint in Inuyasha's eyes as he leaned down right beside Myoga. "Alright you flea, tell me everything you know about this 'Saika.'"

Myoga gulped. Things didn't look good and he wondered if it was too late to run away.

XXX

Elsewhere, on the other side of Feudal Japan, a strangely enchanting scene was taking place.

"Y-young priestess…" It was a small girl, no older than ten, who had spoken. "I-it's not far beyond this forest…"

The priestess smiled cherubically and patted the girl's head. "Thank you. I can assume that you won't be joining me past here?"

The girl shook her head, tears burning at the edges of her eyes. "N-no… I-it's dangerous for someone like me to go into those woods." She gave the priestess a huge smile, hoping to alleviate her fears. "Plus, Mommy and Daddy are probably getting worried now, so I probably should be h-heading home."

The priestess nodded knowingly, as if she had expected that answer all along. "Then run along, little one. I will be fine on my own from here." At the girl's dubious expression, the priestess' smile widened. "Really."

The girl nodded and, without a final word, turned her back and ran as fast as her childish feet could take her. The priestess, eerie smile still placed on those perfectly red lips, made sure the youngster was gone before the smile slipped off like water on glass, only to be replaced with a frown. Without another word, she turned around and made her way through the forest, her steady gait swift and surefooted. It was only when she felt a pair of eyes watching her that she slowed to a stop.

"Who's there?" She leveled her weapon of choice, a bow, at the surrounding trees. Her gaze was intense as she said, "Come out or I'll shoot."

The trees to her immediate right rustled and, with reflexes honed from years of fighting, she whipped around, bow at the ready. If this stranger started anything, she would be sure to shoot him dead.

A lone figure stepped out of the forest, his golden eyes and long silver hair blowing gallantly in the breeze, his own weapon drawn as well. He stared at the priestess as the scent of death overcame him, but he did not step down. If anything, he seemed to slip into a battle stance, Bakusaiga drawn at the ready. If she shot, all hell would break loose.

Kikyo did not waver, but her mask did break to show a grim smile. "Oh, Lord Sesshomaru… How pleasant to see you. Are you doing well?" Her fingers twitched to shoot the demon in the chest. "Strange that we should cross paths like this."

Sesshomaru sighed and glared at the woman. "Put down your weapon, woman. This Sesshomaru has not come here to fight, only for answers."

"Oh?" Kikyo cocked her eyebrow. "And what answers could you possibly be looking for?" She released her spiritual pressure in warning, as if to say she didn't appreciate being patronized like that, before she slowly put her bow away, Sesshomaru following shortly after. "It is very rare for Lord Sesshomaru to take interest in something as trivial as a demonic sword."

"Woman, this Sesshomaru does not find this sword trivial." He smirked, his cold mask slipping away for a microsecond. "It's seems that you do not find this sword trivial either." For once a look of confusion marred his face. "But you will not find it. Someone has taken it, though who I cannot determine." He placed his hand on his sword while Kikyo glowered. "I take it you know?"

Finally, with a deep breath, Kikyo placed her hands up in surrender. "I have no clue," she said, her own face distorted with confusion. "I am only here because a village requested me. They told me that their priest—Sukuza, if I remember correctly—had suffered and passed from an illness not too long ago and they were fearful of the supposed blade he'd been watching." Her gaze hardened, but it seemed to sadden at the same time. "That was two days ago. When I had made it to the village, they were… all of them were…" She took in a shaky breath as she remembered the horrific sight she'd seen, all the bodies, all the blood, all the death... "They'd been murdered. Slaughtered, like cattle. At first," her chest quivered from her anxiety, "at first, I thought a demon had attacked. But I knew in my heart that that wasn't the case and I knew even more when I saw… the stab wounds…"

Sesshomaru did not interrupt, did not even bat an eyelash, just waited patiently for the woman to finish her recounting. Though it was hard not leap across the forest and rip her neck out, he managed.

Kikyo took a shaky breath. "It was Saika. The cursed blade had killed all those people. And the worst part is… I have no idea where she is." Thinking something funny, she looked at Sesshomaru with a hopeless smile, her deep brown eyes grew tired looking, almost like she'd aged fifty years in the short time Sesshomaru had talked to her. "But it is strange that the Lord of the West would take an interest in something like this. Why…?"

Now it was his turn to be uncomfortable. "This village… or rather, that blade… I've heard stories from my father, impossible stories about the demon named Saika, her strength, her cunning, her sick love for all humans…" He smirked then, almost as if he was taking on a challenge. "And I worry about such a blade existing. But more than anything, I remembered one thing my father had told me."

Kikyo seemed to know it too as they said together, "The blade has no body, no will, no love. But it does have a choice. Human born, a trustworthy ally—demon born, despicable creature. Saika loves all humans."

For a moment, there was nothing but silence. Kikyo finally broke it by saying, "And? What is it that scares the Lord Sesshomaru so?"

The dog demon glared, insulted at her implications. "This Sesshomaru is not afraid." Then, in a softer tone, "But I worry. It is possible that one such despicable demon born may be able to control her. Any guess to whom?"

Kikyo felt her eyes widen. That… but he had been Onigumo once. He had been human born. He hadn't always been a demon.

"_Naraku…_"

XXX

**That was such a fun chapter to write. _Sigh_… oh, but am I tired! Please have a wonderful night and as always, review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN INUYASHA OR DURARARA! ALL OF THE CHARACTERS BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS!**

XXX

**Chapter 6**

"Alright Myoga, spill it; what the hell is so special about this Saika blade?" Inuyasha gave an uncertain glance towards the little girl who was trying (failing) not to listen to the conversation, her breathing shallow and her eyes flitting back and forth between the trees, almost as if a demon would pop out and attack the trio at any moment. Actually, now that she was looking around, she realized that the demon slayer and the monk—along with the two smaller demons—were gone, nowhere to be found. Frightened, she automatically grabbed the half-demon's hand, who glared but didn't say anything, much as he wanted. She was, after all, just a kid. Well, that, and the fact that Kagome would probably skin him alive if she heard he'd hurt a small, conscious human girl. He shivered and subconsciously placed his free hand against the sacred beads around his neck, fearful.

He so did not want that to happen.

Myoga quirked a brow at the pair's strange behavior, but decided to let the subject drop. "W-well, my Lord… Saika was an ancient demon that long ago terrorized the lands of Japan…"

_Long ago, hundreds and hundreds of years before the birth of Inuyasha, when all the land was in turmoil, a young demon wandered the world, from village to village, destruction the farthest thing from her mind. She was a beautiful demon; with midnight black hair that reached the tops of her knees, the likes of which was coarse and shining, and two burnt auburn eyes that took in everything with a knowing smile, she was the talk of the towns, a real beauty among beauties. Men, from the lowliest pauper, to the highest prince, fell in love with this demon. _

_And she in love with them._

_Every human, be it child, man, or woman… it didn't matter. She loved them all and cherished them very carefully. Like they were fine porcelain or a single daisy in the midst of winter… Regardless, though, they were all very careful about approaching her. She was, after all, a demon and their fear far outweighed their adoration, no matter how innocent she seemed. Thus, when she established herself at the edge of a village, though they didn't force her out or, worse yet, murder her, she was ostracized and kept at arm's length like she would attack at a moment's notice. Every night, she would cry herself to sleep, asking herself if it was wise staying by such a village. After all, what if they decided they didn't want her after all? What if they decided that she was better off dead, burned and buried under the lands? What if they abandoned her?_

_One night while she was crying, her voice ethereal and sweet, a man stumbled upon her, his graceless entry causing her sobs to cease, as though breathing would invoke the man's wrath on her. Seeing Saika, the beautiful, beautiful Saika crying alone, his own ruby eyes narrowed, nothing but kindness in their deep red depths. "What bothers you, little flower?" _

_Saika felt more tears spill from her eyes, but stubbornly wiped them away, her pugnacious nature getting the best of her. With a sad little smile on her face, she replied, "Nothing that should bother you, good traveler."_

_However, the man—or rather, General, as he wore robes of silk embedded with the emblem of the village's militia—chuckled slightly at her response, the sound causing gooseflesh to form on her skin. "Anything that bothers such a delicate creature is entirely my business, little flower. Now I will ask again—what troubles you?"_

_And it was like a floodgate had been broken. Without any fair warning, she had buried her head in her hands and told him her story—everything, from her birth to her childhood to the loneliness she was feeling now—and soon, her tears had dried like water in the desert, her auburn eyes slowly returning with a bounce of life. Finally, after she had recounted every last detail of her life, the man still had not said a word. She fretted that she may have bored the handsome traveler and he would leave, just like all the others. _

_However, after a moment where he appeared to be pondering deeply, he sighed, the sound startling the demon. He sounded almost… relieved. "Is that all? Though it would be irresponsible for me to say that what you are feeling is insignificant, I can tell you that everybody feels lonely sometimes. Nobody goes without feeling inferior, that's for certain, and what you are feeling is not anything new to humankind."_

_Ah, the misunderstanding. During her recounting, she had felt it necessary to omit the fact that she was actually a demon and that was why the villagers did not care for her. More tears threatened to spill. "A-actually… they have good reason for despising me. You see, I'm a… a…" Fresh tears started anew. "A demon!"_

_She expected him, as many others would, to look disgusted or afraid or simply uninterested, but after a moment of complete silence, he laughed. It wasn't a loud guffaw, but it was deeper than what she was expecting, and Saika felt as though she could drown in it. It resounded through her soul and something claimed that this was right, that he was hers. _

_The thought left her breathless. _

_Finally, after a moment of his quiet chuckling, he said, "A demon you say? Why, there's nothing wrong with that! In fact…" Now that she was paying attention, she realized that he was closer than ever before, their lips precious inches apart. "I believe that it makes you all the more alluring, little flower."_

_And that was only the start. Every day, he brought her a beautiful rose—rare, too, as it was one of the few white roses, the color vibrant and so very romantic—to her humble abode close to the village. The demon, never before having any kind of suitor, was easily taken in by this man's gentle demeanor and suave attitude. Amusingly enough, the surrounding trees and gardens began to promise a better future—the smell of white roses was all too common in the air, so many ails and illnesses alleviated, the townspeople drunk with wealth. The people slowly, but very surely, began warming up to the demon and it was with no time at all that the traveler and the demon's romance spread throughout the kingdom, their love for each other compared to a flower growing in the sun's embrace, growing taller and taller until the flower reached its precious love. It was enough to make many a- woman swoon at the thought. _

_That's why it was no surprise that, after months and months of courtship, the man asked for her hand in marriage. She, in her euphoria, could barely speak—all she could do was nod, but it was enough, for he smiled a smile that rivaled a thousand sunrises and placed a dainty ring on her finger. That night, they gave each other everything—body, mind, and soul—and their love rivaled the love of the Almighty Himself. Everything was perfect. Or rather, everything was going according to plan. Even so, the man continued to bring a white rose to her—without fail, every day._

_One day, after the man had not visited her as he usually did, Saika grew increasingly worried. So worried, in fact, that she finally entered the village—something she hadn't done at all during her romantic time outside of it. She was intensely curious. What did this village look like? How many people were in it? Was it as beautiful as she imagined it in her dreams? _Would it be_, she blushed slightly at the thought, _a place where we could raise our children?_ The thought sent a fresh wave of terror through her; what if she did have children and they didn't like her? What if they called her a monster, just like everyone else? She shook her head, for once having no answer, but more inclined to forget such depressing thoughts. She meant she hadn't even gotten married yet, for heaven's sake! She'd worry about children the eve of their wedding and not a day before—_

_Her inner musings were cut short as the loud, ominous rumble of a wooden gate slowly opened, the sight creepy and eerily suspicious. She wasn't afraid though; in fact, the strange opening hardly did anything to deter her from entering the village. She knew she could handle whatever was in there, be it demon, man, or woman. Or at least, so she thought. _

"_Hello? Anybody in there?" Strange. The village seemed deserted ,old tumbleweeds blowing gallantly in the wind, hardly a soul out in the perfect morning weather. Weren't villages supposed to be… bustling? "If nobody answers me, I'm just going to come in." She had to admit, the dead silence that followed her threat sent a tiny tremor of fear through her heart. Berating herself for being so childish, she slowly entered the village, her eyes darting around for any signs of life. Where was everybody? "Hello?"_

_She continued to walk by the shacks, the cows and donkeys and horses forgotten in the silence that shrouded her soul, all the while listening for any sign of life—hushed voices, padded footsteps, the like. _

_She still heard nothing and now, her hands were beginning to shake, her auburn eyes looking as though she'd just seen a ghost. Though in all honesty, that would've been preferable. If she had seen a ghost, she would've at least known where all the people had gone to. She wouldn't be wandering around the village like a prisoner sent off to die. _

_After a few moments of aimless wandering, she took a stance at a random house and kicked it in. The wood shattered easily under her demonic strength and in she went, all the while keeping her eyes peeled for any sign of movement. When she still saw nothing, she sighed, completely dejected and turned around to leave when…_

"_AAAAH!" She fell backwards, her eyes opened wide in terror, her breaths coming out in shallow gasps as she stared at the bloody visage beside the door. A boy, hardly older than twelve, was standing there, a knife dug into his throat like some sort of wild animal, his mouth open in a silent scream, eyes pleading, pleading, pleading for whoever was attacking to stop. His blonde hair was matted with blood and his skin—his precious, precious skin—was hardly recognizable as bruises of all colors littered his arms like trophies, their shapes misshapen and grotesque. Covering her eyes with her hands, she blindly made her way out of the hut, nearly jumping out of her skin as the thick and steady _drip-drop_ of blood resounded through the empty village. Finally, she made it out and, with shaking legs, fell to her knees, her hands grasping roughly at the soft dirt. _

Is that what happened to all the villagers?_ she wondered, glancing around the village in an almost crazed frenzy. _Are they all… dead?

_Something stirred in the wind—a sound that, had she not been paying any attention, would've escaped her notice and disappeared like a child in the forest. But that sound—it was laughter. People… She'd found her humans!_

_With renewed courage, she hoisted herself up, her bare feet colliding with the earth in such a fashion that dust flew everywhere. She ran and ran and ran—the more she ran, the closer she seemed to get to the noise. Her head became clear too however—what if these weren't the people of the village? What if they were the people who had… who had possibly… murdered everyone?_

_Shaking her head obstinately, she dashed around a corner and realized the noise was impossibly loud now, her thoughts colliding against it like a ball against a wall. The smell of burnt meat and fresh tobacco hung heavy in the air and she allowed herself to follow the repulsive scent, her feet carrying her with a mind of their own. Turning around a corner, she saw the people and covered her mouth, pulling back, hardly ready to be discovered if these people truly were the culprits. _

_The raucous voice of a man reached her first. "You should'a seen their faces! All, 'Oh please, don't kill me! I'll give you whatever you want, so long as you leave my family alone!'" He let out a particularly loud snort, his sides shaking in obvious amusement. "Honestly, as if we wanted their pathetic earnings. Stupid villagers."_

_Another man chimed in with, "Yeah, I'll say. That one kid I killed—what was his name? Oh yeah, Shizuo—he was so shocked that he screamed and screamed his little head off, as if anybody would hear him." He rubbed his ears as though a gnat had flown into the crevice. "Stupid kid broke my knife, but he wasn't expecting the other one that I shoved into his throat!" He cackled like a mad hyena. "He's probably still hanging around that doorpost, ya know. I shoved the knife in so far that it stuck to the wall!"_

"_Quit'cher lyin'. I highly doubt you're strong enough to do something li' that."_

"_Honest! I can go show you his corpse later tonight, if that's what you want. Unless, of course, yer scared."_

_The other man snorted. "Hardly. What do I possibly fear?" And they continued on like that, bantering back and forth, while an enraged demon stood not even ten feet away. She glared, her fear forgotten, and the need to rip these people—no, these _**monsters**_—apart was clawing away at her insides. Taking in a deep breath, she began to walk in when a voice stopped her, her insides turning to ice. _

**No**_**.**_

_No… It… wasn't possible…_

"_We're not going to have time for you to go and show off your stupid little hunt. We've got places to be, people to see, things to do—you know, same old, same old." That voice was chillingly familiar, the deep resonance so achingly familiar that Saika almost collapsed right there on the spot. Shaking slightly, she stopped her assault as he—no, _**her lover**_—said, "I want to be out of here before that stupid demon realizes I'm gone and decides to put its nose into business that it is not a part of." She flinched; what hurt worse—him calling her a stupid demon or him referring to her not as a woman, but as a thing, an 'it'? Tears silently rolled down her face. "I mean, once those others come and see the destruction of the village, they'll automatically assume that it was that demon who destroyed it, not us. We'll be able to take the village for all its worth and nobody's going to be any the wiser!"_

_She must've let out a louder breath than she'd intended, for after a moment, it got surprisingly quiet in the hut. Two finger snapped and a mumbled, "Yes, Izaya-sama," brought the two men from earlier closer to her hiding spot. Her first instinct was to flee; after all, what would they do when they caught her? But then, the closer they got, the more in focus they became, she had to stifle a small gasp. There was so much blood… Her mind flickered, like one would a lamp, back to the young boy in the hut, hanging beside the doorframe, his mouth open in that final, god-awful scream. She shivered, but it wasn't from fear this time. No, they had to _**pay**_…_

They had to die.

_With a loud cry, she launched herself at the nearest man, his hands too slow, too impossibly slow, to block the onslaught that was Saika. Her foot connected with his jaw, the action producing a satisfying crunch, and the man slowly, so incredibly slowly, fell backwards with a thump on the earth. She was far from finished though; as she saw him, writhing on the ground in pain, the scene scarily similar to probably the deaths of all the other villagers, she lost all sense of reason and self-control. _

_Falling over his body, she clenched her fingers together and drove a fist into his nose, his eyes—anything she could get her hands on. One punch to the throat. One punch to the nose. One punch to the chest. And she continued on like this, her movements like one of a marionette, smooth and shaky and so very inhuman. Satisfying crunch after crunch. Satisfying grunts of pain and suppressed screams from the man underneath her. _

_The satisfying sound as the man's grunts of pain became more like whimpers, before they disappeared altogether. Shaky slightly, she could hardly breathe, hardly feel anything except that terrible bloodlust, that sticky scarlet blood that covered her hands in upmost propriety. Something, much like a raindrop fell—and another and another and they continued to fall, wetting his face, that slack face, with the salty tears. And soon she was wailing, laying her tear soaked face against the dead man, her breaths coming out in shallow gasps. Her fists ached, the feeling sensational, and she continued to whimper, refusing to wipe away her tears. She just killed someone. She'd just killed a monster—no, a human. She loved humans. She did—_

_Barely registering the hands that were pulling her up, her mind a total mess, she didn't realize the other man from before was holding her in front of her lover until it was all too late. A fist slammed into her solar plexus, her whimpers of fear and sadness being replaced by pained sputtering, as she glared at the man she had once called beloved._

_Beloved…_

"_W-why?!" she shrieked, her voice shrill and demanding, much like a mother reprimanding her children. Tears and snot dripped down her face like a broken pipe. "Why did you kill all those people?" She bit her lower lip, the anger and sadness coming to a boiling point in her lax form. "Why would you… kill the village where we could've raised our children…? Izaya… please… just tell me…" She lowered her head as a wail escaped. "WHY?!"_

_Her lover—no, this __**murderer**__—laughed, the sound just as deep and angelic as the first time they'd met. Only, this time, his eyes weren't warm, nor were they cordial—they were cold, mocking, dead. There was no love in those eyes at all—had there ever been? Or had everything been a lie? "Why, you say? 'Why did you kill those people? Why would you kill the village where we could've raised our children?' Hah!" Saika flinched from the unexpected raise in volume. "Don't make me laugh, you disgusting demon." He smirked as she seemed to go into herself, like she could hide from him with such a pathetic front. "Honestly? You want to know why I killed all those people, why I pretended to love you?" He motioned for the man behind her to let her down, not like she'd resist; she was far too shell-shocked, much like a soldier back from war, her legs hardly supporting her anymore. She slumped down on the floor, her energy spent, as he kneeled down beside her, the sight a mockery of compassion and love. _

"_You want to know why, hmm?" He was so close, so impossibly close; his breath in her ear was ticklish and warm and so very reminiscent of things once had. More tears fell down her face as he leaned in closer, his voice barely above a whisper. "It's because I felt sorry for you, you stupid monster. I felt sorry for you—I _**pitied**_ you—for you were always alone, always just beyond the reach of human compassion. I'm not completely heartless; I figured I could give you at least some sort of happiness before I sent your entire life to hell."_

"_Wha…?"_

"_Speechless, you despicable monster?" His bright carmine eyes narrowed into a pitiable glance, his lithe fingers rubbing soothing circles on her cheek, as though he was a father comforting a child. "You should be. These plans went through a lot of consideration and I for one have no intention of having them messed up by some nosy demon." He gave a quick nod to the man, who shakily returned it back, a sword held high in his hands. "Now… I'll be taking my leave. Stay here and rot, you monster—don't follow me." He snorted as his hand nimbly grabbed the soft metal, the feel of the blade reassuring in his grasp—the feeling of what was about to transpire all the more alluring. "Not like it matters—by this time tomorrow, you'll be a wanted fugitive by priests and priestesses alike." His eyes narrowed, any sign of mirth or sympathy gone in that single moment. "Now, get out of my sight!"_

_The foreign feeling as sharpened metal met flesh ripped a scream from her already too-dry throat, her own crimson eyes opened wide in pain, though hardly any from the blade itself. No, if she was being completely honest…_

_Barely sparing her a glance, Izaya turned back to the man and said, "Come on; it'll be nightfall soon and though we took care of one monster, I'd rather not capture the attention of another." He spun on his heel quickly, his footsteps all business. "Come along now."_

_No… if she was being completely honest…_

_Sensing the other man was not following, Izaya turned around, ire settled in those lucid red eyes. The man, on the other hand, was staring at Saika like she was a broken vase—not pity, definitely not—but a kind of childish trepidation, as though he would be scolded for the mess. "I-Izaya-sama… are you sure it's wise to leave her here…?" At his Lord's raised brow, he continued hurriedly, "I-I mean, what if those priests and priestesses come to destroy her and they realize the destruction wasn't her doing? What if they… come after us?" He gave another fearful glance towards the quiet demon. "What if she… comes after us?"_

_No, if she was being completely honest, the pain she felt from the blade paled in comparison to the pain she felt from her betrayal. She had loved him—given him everything, given him __**herself**__—but in the end, in this god awful ending, it wasn't enough. She had been betrayed. A little smile played at her lips. _

_Betrayed…_

_And slowly, much like an old record, her mind began sorting through scenarios, impossible scenario after scenario, before she settled on one, the most impossible of them all—but the most likely to succeed. She just needed a little more time…_

_A knowing light came into those two scarlet eyes, a smile settling on those thin, perfect lips. "Tell me something, and I want you to be honest; why do you think I brought _**two**_ men to help me? As it goes, I could've easily slaughtered the village myself AND been out of here by noontide. But alas…" A cold mockery came into those eyes, any sense of serenity gone like a ripple on the tide, "I came here with two and even had enough gall to wait around, knowing full well that damned demon would come and look for me. Have you ever heard of 'insurance?'"_

_Her smile widened on her lips, though it was far from calming. Psychotic, almost. Just a few more minutes…_

"_Insurance…?" The man looked queasy, a greenish tint coming across his cheeks, his hands resting precariously over his stomach. "Wha…?" He swallowed deeply, his throat suddenly thick with fear. "W-what do you mean, insurance…?"_

**Now.**

_Izaya smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Why don't you find out for yourself?"_

_Before the man could even ponder this, he saw out of his peripheral a scene straight out of hell. Two bloody eyes of pure fury glared at him with the utmost ferocity, those irises loud and burning. Her chest, that glorious chest, was covered with blackish blood, oozing from every pore like an artist had spilled ink onto a canvas. In her hand, small and seemingly at home, was the posh sword, glistening with the same black blood, the hilt giving off a dangerous aura—a demonic aura, he realized, though it was much too late. Before he could even scream, the sword slashed straight through his abdomen, his own crimson blood mixing serendipitously with her own, and he fell—not dead, but pretty damned close—as more and more of his blood stained the earth red. Glancing around, he realized that his employer was no longer here, and he was alone, with this terrifying monster. Monster… He felt hot tears spill down his cheeks, the burning pain in his stomach growing hotter and hotter. He was going to die… He was going to die… He clenched his eyes shut, a whimper escaping his throat. He was going to die!_

_And suddenly, he saw two sandal-clad feet standing in his way, the glistening sword shining like a beacon in the night. With the rest of the energy he could muster, he glanced up, trying to find pity in those crazed, fiery eyes, something that would show she was still sane, still capable of having an ounce of mercy left. But as he gazed into those eyes—those eyes that had lost all sense to continue, those eyes that had lost all sense of reason, _**those eyes**_—he found none. He only found a dazzling madness, the depths of those eyes haunting and forever etched in his memory, a malicious smile splitting her face in two as though it would crack. Raising the blade, she smiled brightly before she brought it down on his head._

_The last thing he ever saw were three tiny red tentacles protruding from her mouth, that terrifying smile never leaving her cherubic face._

XXX

"It was then that Saika went on a rampage, killing everything and everyone—be it human, demon, or hanyou—and destroying village after village in her wake." Totosai took a sip of his tea, the fire from his breath heating up the beverage to near boiling temperatures. "She continued looking for the man—Izaya, if legend serves correctly—who had broken her heart, who had betrayed her in the worst of ways." He eyed the wandering spirit warily, a sudden pensive look against his ashen face. "But why do you ask, wandering maiden? Isn't it strange that you haven't heard of this legend before, given your travels?"

The woman beside him, with a red and white hakuma, long black hair tied in a low ponytail, and a bow by her side, took a sip of her tea as well, taking a few moments to answer his question, weighing each word carefully as if they were fragile glass. Honestly, she had heard of the story, but as Totosai had said—or rather, as nearly every story-teller would tell you—Saika continued looking for her betrayer, but after that, things became a little hazy. Nobody knew anything past her demonic rampage. Did she ever find her ex-lover? How had she become a blade? And, the more pressing issue, what did Naraku have to do with any of this?

Giving a thoughtful little hum, she settled with, "I have heard this legend before with a few… minor differences." Kikyo knew that Totosai had not missed her change in tone. "The thing is, I wish to understand what happened after the legend's end. Did she ever find her love? If so, what happened to him? And then…" She placed her tea down and clasped her hands gently in her lap. "How did she ever become a blade?"

"Quite a curious priestess you are," Totosai muttered, giving the woman a sideways glance. Raising his voice, he said, "Well, I can see where you're coming from. But I must warn you, this next bit of history is hardly known by anybody—nay, except thyself and a few choice others, blessed be their souls. It is a bit of dark history from the beginning of what is today known as Inuyasha's Forest…"

_Hardly had she seen such a glorious sight, that magnificent, blood drenched sight. Hardly at all… A smile etched on her face, she meandered over to a young child, his panting harsh and grating as he struggled—vainly—to fight off the throes of death. He turned a half-blind eye towards her, his hands clenching his neck desperately, an air of pleading about his person. But there was something different—a pull, an inclination, or something of the like—that gave her pause in her descent to kill him. It was something Saika couldn't exactly place her finger on…_

"_Please don't k-kill me," the boy begged, pausing only to cough up sickly red mucus on the parched earth. "I-I promise I won't tell anyone."_

_Saika cocked her head, her once manic smile one of confusion, her carmine eyes widened in surprise. This child… Her blade resounded, as if marked, and she stared at the boy dumbly, uncomprehending. Who was this child? And why did she feel such a strange pull in her heart?_

"_Who are you?" she asked, her eyes never leaving his broken form lest it be a trick. "You look so familiar…"_

_The little boy coughed again, the sound like a dying man at a hospital. "My n-name is O-Oni… Onigumo…" Tears welled up in his eyes. "Please…! If you spare me, I'll just…" Using the last of his strength, he grabbed her leg—ignoring the bright blood settled there—and wailed, tears and snot and blood coming out of each of his pores like a waterfall. He grasped her leg hard, his strength surprisingly solid for such a deathly boy, as he rasped in his slowly fading voice, "Please! Just take me back to my daddy…" He looked at her through hooded eyes. "I'm begging you!"_

_Saika cocked her head slowly, her mouth opened in what could only be described as astonishment. She… knew this child. She knew him or rather, knew someone like him, someone she'd met long ago... someone like _**him**_. A memory came, unbidden, as she remembered two lips, soft and beautiful and so very sweet, as they kissed her jaw, her cheek, her eyes, before settling on the softest place of all and kissing there, his mouth intertwining with her own. And those red eyes, those deep and curious red eyes, looking into her very soul, the color harsh, but so calming, the face of love, the face of the man she hated—_

_As if the child had thrown acid on her skin, she reared back, her auburn eyes widened in suspicion, in fear, in every emotion that she had experienced while with that man. Her hated enemy… And as the child kept staring at her, his eyes that beautiful red, his mouth opened in a silent plea, she lost the very control she'd regained. Gritting her teeth together, she felt, as though in a dream, her hand tighten against the bloodied blade's hilt, raising it up as sunlight slanted against it in a mocking glory—as if the blade would save him. Manic grin reappearing on her face, she raised the blade, fully intent on taking the child's head off, to send him off to meet his family in the Underworld._

_A strange thing happened then, one that would, undoubtedly, remain in her memory for her entire life to come. Fast as lightening, a dark-haired man—who had seen much easier days, as his robes were torn in more places than not and his dark hair was matted with sticky sweat and dried blood—leapt in front of the enraged demon, his back bared to her as he cowered over his child's body with his hands held high in surrender. Blade met flesh, the sound of slicing skin piercing the air like a screeching bird, and a deep red flower formed against his broken skin, a gasp escaping those impossibly dry lips, though his posture hardly wavered. If anything, it seemed to find resolve in itself—strengthening and washing away any trace of doubt—as he near bent from the pressure in his shoulder, his low grunts of pain enough to stop Saika's descent. _

…_She knew that voice… She knew it…_

_No… _

_But she knew it so…_

"_Well, we meet again— don't we, little flower?" Saika felt her blood boil, her hands beginning to shake, her eyes opened wide in a battle lust, the red she was seeing not nearly enough—no way nearly enough—to make her forget what this man did to her, to make her forget all the broken promises, all the lies, all the deceit… But as she stood there, more than able to finish this charade once and for all, she found her legs stiff as concrete, like a stone statue that had been broken, destroyed, trampled on by its owners. She stood there, her carefully cultivated mask of (was it a mask? Or had she really lost it?) euphoric madness sliding away to reveal a frown. Her eyes jumped from him to the boy to him again, and she then knew the truth, the dastardly truth that had been kept secretive for decades and decades. She had been abandoned for _**him**_. That dirty child… She'd been abandoned for such a deathly child…_

_Abandoned…_

_With a sharp intake of breath, another memory came unbidden, though memory might not be the right term. It had been a dream, a wish, for a child such as this to exist, to love her and call her 'mother.' Boy or girl, demon or human, she cared not. She would love that child just as much as she loved its father—perhaps even more so, if she being honest. This child would've been hers… This child would be hers…_

_Hers…_

_Dropping her blade, she felt a lone tear escape, leaving a sticky trail on her cheek. _Do not think that way_, she chided, though she could hardly contain her tears. _Do not think of what could have been… _But it was no use. As she stared at the man—no, the father and child, the future she should've had—she could not honestly remember why her heart called out for this man's blood in the first place. She loved him, didn't she? She loved him…_

_Love…_

_With a resounding gasp that was loud enough to wake the dead, she stepped backwards, her steps clumsy and stupid, all the while furiously wiping away the gathering tears like a funeral eulogy. Somewhere in the deep recesses of her mind, she rationalized in her insanity that this was no longer her lover and that was not her child by any rights. She rationalized that he had betrayed her, hurt her in the worst possible way, and that he had to pay by whatever means possible. He had to pay…_

_But…_

_With hardly any strength left, she fell to her knees, the sword completely forgotten in her meltdown, the world spinning, spinning, spinning impossibly so. She couldn't breathe, couldn't feel the wind or the hatred or the love or the blood… She couldn't even feel herself. It was like she didn't exist, like she was just a specter floating between this world and the next, her own body floating, buoyant. "No…" She couldn't… _

"_No…" Deep breaths, but was she really breathing? "No… NO!"_

_And then, the world shattered._

XXX

"No… Onigumo…"

Two dark eyes peered down anxiously, in the space between this world and the next, their depths impossibly large, the amethyst irises hideous but strangely mesmerizing. A voice, soft as velvet, said, _Yes, my little flower?_

"Don't let him take me away…"

Words deceptively kind, the voice said, _Of course, my little flower. I won't let anyone hurt you. I'll protect you. All you must do is simply __**come to me**__._

As if on cue, the jewel shards began glowing with a soft light, but it was not warm, almost cold to the touch. They continued to glow like this for a moment, a silent hum filling the air, before the light died down into a withering whisper of beauty. The strange figure went too, and in another moment disappeared completely out of sight.

And Anri, oblivious, rolled onto her side as a chill wracked her body.

XXX

**Okay, so you're all probably going to kill me for taking this long to update and for that I'm sorry! I've actually had this entire chapter written for a while now, but between rewrites, school, and the feeling that this chapter should've been much longer, I didn't get it done in a timely manner. I can't say it won't happen again, but I hope that this nice long chapter perks your spirits up :3 **

**Hopefully you enjoyed this and as always, REVIEW! Your reviews mean the world to me. Seriously.**

**On an unrelated note, I have a request to ask all of the readers, be you new or old, to do. It's up to you if you want to do it, but this April 15****th**** some relatives of mine are participating in an AFSP walk, which stands for American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. The profits raised from this walk will go towards the research, education, and prevention of suicide around the globe and any donations are highly encouraged. They are all 100% tax deductible and even a small donation will help the AFSP. This is in honor of someone in my family that committed suicide and my relatives are looking to raise at least $500. So far, they're at $200 and with your help, they could have even more! **

**If you're interested, please look at the following link and leave a donation at: **** . ?fuseaction= &teamID=46436**

**Thank you and please, have a wonderful day! **


End file.
